A few months ago, I answered a call to participate in the Multicultural Children's Book Day. I did not hesitate. The book review just came out on Bicultural Mama's Blog. It is so encouraging to see and be connected to a community of authors, readers and parents who care about and promote multicultural living. For me, bilingual books are the true reflection of our lives. For my family, we are embracing, but at times struggling, to maintain an environment for multiple languages. My children have access to French instruction at school so they are fluently bilingual in English and French. Their Chinese lessons are now reduced to tutorial sessions. I still order books online, and from my work travel, I bring back publications from China once in a while. The stories that interest my daughters, and most importantly, resonnate with their life experiences are still rare to find. I am hopeful that Multicultural Chidren's Book Day will change that. After all, there are a lot of families like mine - we live in the intersection of cultures. It makes sense to celebrate that.
Sunday, 13 January 2019
Sunday, 23 July 2017
Two years after Four Seasons are published
It's been two years since Fun in Four Seasons are published. Since then, the books were selected for Victoria Public Library's Emerging Authors' Collection. I have sold out my first print run and released the second print edition. A few reader reviews are also shared online. Here is one example from Amazon by Cindy Xin.
- This is a book infused with animated colours and spirited images. A rare collaboration between mother and daughters, the book embodies labour, fun and love. Reading the book, I can imagine being a child again splashing the spring rain puddles, digging my toes in the summer sandy beach, wading through the autumn leaves in my woolen stockings, and making a fresh set of footprints in the morning snow before building my snowman. What is it about those feet, the children’s feet on the cover pages of the Four Seasons? They just make you lift the pages, walk you through the joy of their worlds, and take you in as part of it, all accompanied by the music of the simple and lyrical language. I trust both parents and children will enjoy reading the book, together or alone, in all four seasons. It is simply a pleasure.
Recently, I met a young reader in person in Edmonton. Six years old Andre has his set of Fun in Four Seasons with him for home reading and on trips. According to his parents, the books are worn out because he reads them a lot. I asked him which season is his favorite, he replied "Spring, because I like to jump in puddles too". That warms my heart. Nothing is more rewarding than hearing a reader's positive feedback!
Two years also saw some big changes in my life. I changed my job and moved to Kingston Ontario. This past 6 to 8 months have been hectic, settling into a new community, finding new direction for my career and parenting my teenage daughters. Looking back at the stories I created with them when they were little and the Chinese learning we shared, it is such a precious memory. It is a cliche when we say kids grow up so fast, but it is very true. We are still conducting Chinese lessons at home. I plan on writing and publishing more stories. To order the books, please email me at iningtracychao at gmail dot com. OR visit amazon.ca. The best way to find it is searching by my name "Ining Tracy Chao".
Thursday, 4 December 2014
四季叢書上市了 Four Seasons Books Are Available in Print
It took two years... well, three years if you count the very initial writing of the spring poem, to producing the print version of the Four Seasons series. I re-learned photography, re-worked the texts with editors, and re-arranged the layouts with the help of a talented graphic designer. Lots of technical details throughout the production process. The Chinese saying "好事多磨 (hao shi duo mou)" is very true as good things do and should take long. Now I have something to show my ideal of bilingual stories as a reflection of our living at the intersection of Chinese and Canadian cultures. You can email me (iningtracychao at gmail dot com) to purchase the books or just to let me know what you think about the books. I love hearing from the readers - young and old!
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